Teen victim in Indiana school shooting a 'shining star,' friends say

INDIANAPOLIS — Family members of a 13-year-old girl rushed to the hospital Friday after the teen was allegedly shot by a fellow classmate at Noblesville West Middle School.

A friend of the girl's family confirmed to IndyStar that the teen was in surgery after being shot in the chest. A news release, issued just after 8 p.m. ET, by the Noblesville Police Department stated that she was in critical condition "at the time of this release."

The Star is not naming the teen because police have not revealed her name, and family members have so far declined to respond to requests for comment.

The family friend said she first learned about the shooting when the girl's grandfather posted an appeal on Facebook.

"Her husband posted on Facebook, you know, 'Please pray for my granddaughter, shot this morning at her middle school in Noblesville,'" she said. "And I stopped breathing as, you know, everybody else who read that probably did, too."

The girl's grandparents were on the way to the hospital from their home in northeast Indiana, the friend said. She wished to be unnamed but said she spoke with permission from the family.

The teen, she said, would be the last person she would imagine being shot in school.

"She's a stellar student. She's highly involved in school. A beautiful girl," she said. "I can only imagine why this happened."

Friends at school, emerging shocked from their holding place at Noblesville High School on Friday afternoon, painted a picture of a bright, popular seventh-grader known for her love of singing.

Various friends, confirming the identity of the victim, said she is active in the middle school's choir and show choir, where her outgoing personality is a big presence.

“She’s a popular girl,” said Jayden Williams, an eighth-grade student in show choir with her. “She’s really friendly.”

Her social media posts show a gregarious, happy teen who loves posing for pictures with friends and family and making videos set to music. On one popular app, she had shared more than 800 video clips — often close-ups of her face while she lip-synced to popular music.

Public Instagram posts show a young girl who loves coloring, makeup and family beach vacations and who gets excited for the candy in her Easter basket.

She also has a YouTube channel with dozens of subscribers, where since at least 2016 she has posted videos offering glimpses into the daily life of a seemingly typical young girl. Most appear to be made in her bedroom, where posters of a peace sign and Justin Bieber hang on the walls, along with her name spelled out in large letters.

In one video, she complains about a bad hair day and her messy bedroom. In another, she shows some of the gifts she received for her 13th birthday in February. Others feature her discussing music, playing Mad Libs with a younger brother and discussing her daily makeup routine.

In one of the videos, she answers questions about herself. In it, she reveals she is left-handed, blonde and the only one in her family who can sing.

In an Instagram post Thursday, she talked about what a great day she'd had at school making a movie in choir class and playing laser tag. She was going to study for a science test on Friday. She was in science teacher Jason Seaman's class when she and her teacher were shot.

Jayden Williams was in the locker room, changing out of his gym clothes when the announcement came over the school’s PA system.

“It’s not a drill. Shots have been fired by the seventh-grade hallway.”

The eighth-grader and his classmates escaped the school through the back of the building and ran through fields, over to the nearby Fox Prairie Golf Course.

“We were all pretty scared,” Jayden said.

Eventually, they were bused to the high school to meet up with the rest of the classmates. All except two.

The victim and the boy who allegedly shot her.

Lynn Partlow was in the high school cafeteria when she found out her friend had been shot.

"All I could see was (her) friends crying," she said. "I was in shock. I couldn't believe it."

The pair have been in choir together this year.

"I try to be around her every single day because she lightens my day," Lynn said. "I don't know how I'd survive without this shining star."

The other victim in Friday's shooting, science teacher Seaman, underwent surgery at IU Health Methodist Hospital for multiple gunshot wounds, according to his family.